Latest news with #physicians
Medscape
an hour ago
- Health
- Medscape
Medscape Poll: Exercise Prescriptions
In this brief survey, Medscape would like to hear about your approach to prescribing exercise to patients.
CBC
a day ago
- Health
- CBC
Health P.E.I. not imposing a minimum number of patients on family doctors, says CEO
'We're not asking the physicians to take on a larger panel than they've ever had' A gap is developing between what Health P.E.I. says and what the Medical Society of P.E.I. insists is the case when it comes to the patient roster benchmarks the province is asking family doctors to meet. Earlier this month, the society announced it planned to sue the health agency for breach of contract over proposed targets saying a full-time family physician should have 1,600 people on the roster and see 24 patients a day. The medical society said at the time that the proposed "minimum" workloads for doctors would lead to burnout and drive physicians from the province. But on Thursday, Health P.E.I. CEO Melanie Fraser told CBC News those targets are "maximums," and said they would be scaled back if doctors perform other duties — like emergency room work and other hospital shifts. There would also be different expectations for doctors who practice on their own versus those who work in a team-based patient medical home, Fraser said. "We're not asking the physicians to take on a larger panel than they've ever had — 1,600 was the maximum benchmark, it remains the maximum benchmark," she said in an interview. "At the same time, we do need to have some measure to understand how many patients [we can] affiliate to a particular physician." Last August, the government, Health P.E.I. and the medical society together announced a new physician services agreement. It saw the Island become the first province in Canada to recognize family medicine as a specialty and promised a 35 per cent boost to doctors' pay over the next five years. New agreement for P.E.I. doctors expected to boost recruitment and retention But then last month, Health P.E.I. introduced a draft version of its new operational guide, which included a requirement that each family doctor see two dozen patients a day, based on an average appointment being 15 minutes long. The guide also said each full-time family doctor's practice should have a panel of 1,600 patients, with penalties imposed if that target isn't met. We do value our doctors, we do want to retain all the physicians that we have…. I'm confident that we can get through these concerns. — Melanie Fraser, Health P.E.I. CEO The draft guide clearly states that the targets were minimum standards. "Physicians will be expected to maintain a minimum panel size as described within the Family Physician Panel Policy," says a section on page 24 of the guide. "The resulting FTE [full-time equivalent] is then used to calculate a physician's assigned panel benchmark, based on a reference point of 1,600 patients per 1.0 FTE." 'That is not possible to do' Fraser's language on Thursday told a different story. She said a 1,600-patient panel has been the maximum since 2016; it hasn't changed since then; and Health P.E.I. is not intending to change it. Family doctors who spoke to CBC News over the past week seemed to be of the understanding that they would have to meet the benchmarks as minimums, however. "This is not possible to do, what they're asking," Summerside family physician Dr. David Antle said in a June 15 interview. "People, including me, are already teetering on burnout and this will send us over the edge." Antle said he has 900 patients on his roster and sees about 20 of them each day when working at the Summerside Medical Centre. That's in addition to emergency room shifts, and the time it takes to review patient test results and consult with other doctors about care. "If this goes through — and it's going to be forced upon us with threats of potential punishment if you don't meet it — I can't provide the care that's needed for the patients I have. Full-stop," he said. "There's no way I can do it and there's no way my colleagues can do it." Fraser acknowledged Thursday that the talks between Health P.E.I. and doctors have broken down, but said she's confident negotiations on operating guide will be resolved. WATCH | Why some family doctors believe new Health P.E.I. targets will drive physicians away: Media Video | Why some family doctors believe new Health P.E.I. targets will drive physicians away Caption: Family doctors on P.E.I. are worried about physician burnout and the quality of care they can provide. Health P.E.I. is proposing doctors should have at least 1,600 patients, and see 24 of them every day. Two family doctors, including Dr. Jeannette Verleun, weigh in about their fears and how they think the changes might impact Islanders. CBC's Connor Lamont reports. Open Full Embed in New Tab Loading external pages may require significantly more data usage than loading CBC Lite story pages. The consultation process is scheduled to continue into July. "We're really hoping to have the input and feedback brought back to the process so that we can consider it and move forward," Fraser said. "We do value our doctors, we do want to retain all the physicians that we have, all the staff that we have…. I'm confident that we can get through these concerns, through the process that we have." The CEO also noted that three more family doctors have been hired for P.E.I. in the last three weeks, but wouldn't say where in the province they are expected to work.
Forbes
a day ago
- Health
- Forbes
The Unsung and (Often Exhausted) Heroes: Moms
The young mother was visibly exhausted. She had been up for two nights as her six-month-old ran a fever and cried nonstop. She had thought about going to the ER but worried about the long wait, especially without childcare for her two-year-old as her husband was out of town. Now she was in the pediatrics office with an air of despair. 'Please help me. I don't know what's wrong with my child". Parenting Can Be Stressful Being a parent is a journey, even in the best of times. Whether it's a sick infant, a clumsy toddler with a broken arm, a 9-year old starting the soccer season with a concussion, or a teen struggling with anxiety at school, the potential challenges can be endless. Unfortunately, the weight of parenting and supporting kids through this myriad of issues often falls disproportionately on moms. Almost 25% of women leave their jobs in the first year after having kids. After five years, only about 30 percent of these moms have returned to work. Over three-quarters of moms report they are the ones responsible for managing their children's healthcare. It is not surprising to see that JAMA recently published a study about the stress and decline in mental health that moms are experiencing. This seems to be relevant to many professions. In a Healio survey of physicians, 64 percent of women reported that they had caregiving responsibilities, and greater than 50% reported that this had a significant impact on their stress levels. Mental Health is Often Impacted Maternal stress and mental health can have rippling effects and impact kids' own mental health, affect their social skills, educational success, and even their weight. These consequences may begin even before birth – infants of mothers dealing with depression, anxiety, or stress while they were pregnant have been shown to struggle more with social and emotional development. Parental mental illness is one of the adverse childhood experiences that the American Academy of Pediatrics flags as high risk for leading to poor health as adults. Community is Key Stress and mental illness do not exist in a vacuum - a multitude of external factors exert stress on a parent's day-to-day life, from financial instability and food insecurity, to lack of childcare and mental health services. Policies that protect and expand social services for families would help to alleviate many stressors that parents may face, including protections for SNAP, Medicaid, and legislation to support affordable childcare. Guaranteed robust and paid maternity leave policies would allow new moms to heal, rest, and adapt to this next chapter. In Europe, for example, many countries offer up to a year of parental leave, with much of it paid. Online community support can be helpful and some resources do exist. The National Maternal Mental Health Hotline is available at 1-833-TLC-MAMA (1-833-852-6262) via text or call as a 24/7 service for pregnant people or moms to talk to counselors who can provide support and refer them to local resources. Self Compassion Can Buffer Stress But an essential change to help our moms, often the 'Chief Health Officers' of the family, is a culture shift. Moms and caregivers should be encouraged to get off the treadmill, pause, take care of themselves and support systems should be in place to allow this to happen. This concept of 'self compassion' has been studied extensively and has made a difference in teachers, healthcare professionals and parents. The 'reset' includes breathing techniques, visualization, guided meditation and mindset shifts. To allow for these pauses, our essential caregivers must also have an inner team of family and friends that they can hand off to, or lean on, so they can take time to reset and breathe. Imagine this - the young mother calls her neighbor, who watches her toddler while she takes her baby to urgent care. The doctor diagnoses the child with an ear infection, prescribes antibiotics and shows her how to suction her baby's nose so he (and she) can sleep soundly. Everyone wakes up the next day rested and calm. Self compassion, connection and a village are essential parts of helping our most significant caregivers- moms. When we uplift our moms and other caregivers, there is a rippling effect to the health of the children now and longterm. Written with Alice Gao, MD.
CTV News
a day ago
- Health
- CTV News
Sudbury hospital annual meeting highlights success, challenges
Northern Ontario Watch Some of the highlights from the Health Sciences North annual hospital meeting are the hiring of 900 new staff and 32 physicians.
Medscape
a day ago
- Business
- Medscape
Infographic: Doctors Who Enter the Entrepreneurial World
Nearly 4 of 10 doctors surveyed were already involved in an entrepreneurial venture apart from their primary medical job or considering one. One in four of those physicians aimed to eventually spend 100% of their time on the outside venture. They frequently were confident of eventual success and profitability, according to a new Medscape report. This infographic presents key findings from a new report profiling doctors who feel the entrepreneurial urge. To learn more, check out the Medscape Physicians as Entrepreneurs Report 2025. Medscape Physicians as Entrepreneurs Report 2025
